Yesterday, the food product authorities Fødevarestyrelsen closed down the suspected supplier of the bad sandwich meat responsible for the infection, Jørn A Rullepølser, but now it has emerged that listeria was first found in the company’s products in May.

”I have asked Fødevarestyrelsen for a report and will follow the proceedings very closely,” Jørgensen told Politiken newspaper.

“It’s deeply tragic that the outbreak has claimed human lives and I take the situation very seriously.”

Not a first-time offender Three weeks after the May findings, Jørn A Rullepølser was cleared, despite the fact that five people at the time had been infected with the bacteria.

Jørgensen is working in close co-operation with Fødevarestyrelsen, Denmark’s Technical University and the national serum institute Statens Serum Institut to fully uncover the case details and cease the spread of the bacteria.

Jørn A Rullepølser was also involved in a case involving listeria in one of its products back in 1999 that led to infected beef brisket being withdrawn from shops.